Afterwards
by SaiSaiLove
Summary: We all know about Ace's demise, but what happened to him after? Read for yourself! Oneshot only. Read and review please! Also, MAJOR spoilers who haven't read up to chapter 574! Don't read if you don't want to be horribly spoiled.


This is a kind of 'what if?' to see what happened to Ace after he died. And, although I'm still kinda in denial, I thought this idea was pretty cool and decided to write it. Be nice please!

I don't own anything.

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"Thank you for loving me…"

There was darkness. Light was a fleeting thing to him now. All there was for him was to die with that beautiful smile on his face, not letting those dearest to him see him sad in his last moments. He welcomed death. But if that was so, why was it that he could blink his eyes and squint them so that the bright shining sun wouldn't blind him? Why could he see clouds and the sky and hear the birds? Where was he now?

'Huh…?' Ace absentmindedly thought, slowly taking in all that surrounded him, 'The last thing I remember…I died. Is this heaven?'

Ace dragged himself into a sitting position and rubbed at his eyes. Although he was tired, he forced himself to look around this strange new place. Everything was bright and stunning and pure white. There were people walking around and giving him small waves with equally small smiles. Everyone here, Ace noticed, looked happy. There was one person who stood out from the content people who wondered about, however. It was woman. She had freckles, wavy sun touched blond hair and sparkling eyes. It wasn't these attributes that made her stand out from the rest, though. It was the fact that she was politely standing a few feet away from him, staring directly into his eyes. Ace didn't know what or who this woman was, but several clicks and a pop in his head found its way onto his lips.

Hesitating for a moment he said,

"I'm so happy to finally meet you Mom."

Her dark brown eyes looked at him again. "It's so nice to hear you call me that." She paused, "I've waited for so long to hear it... I wish your father could hear it too."

Suddenly Ace's eyes turned cold and his body was stiff. Rouge was startled at the sudden change in her son, and began to worry. Before she could ask, however, he looked to the clouds and muttered, "That man is not my father. My only father is Whitebeard."

Rouge looked at Ace, sadness spilling off her. She placed a pale hand on Ace's cheek. She was completely silent for little more then a moment. She was so quiet that Ace jumped slightly when she finally spoke in a whispered voice, "He loved you, you know. He begged that marine to keep you safe after you were born. He loved you so much that he requested to be born again just to be by your side. Although he doesn't have any of his past memories… he still has the same soul that loved you with all his heart."

Ace wanted to look away from her, but couldn't. He wanted to shout that he didn't care about that man, and wanted to scream that that man was even more horrible because he left her alone again, but the words just couldn't be formed. Ace wanted to be angry at his blood father… but found that he couldn't. The hate didn't come. He sighed.

"… Who is he now?"

Rouge giggled, the sound was beautiful in Ace's ears. "Someone very close to you. I think you know him as… Luffy, was it?"

Ace's jaw dropped shock evident in his face. "Wha—wait, WHAT?"

Rouge's giggling turned into full blown laughter. "Oh, I wish I had a camera! I'm sure everyone would love to see your face just now."

Ace didn't even respond to her comment. "Wha… what… what?!"

"Your foster brother, Ace. Remember? The one you've been with since you were little?" Rouge smiled at his shock. "In fact, I don't think he's changed all that much. He's just become a little slower and a lot louder..." She mused aloud with glittering eyes, her voice still not reaching Ace.

"I… I think I'm gonna faint."

"Don't do that honey, you've just woken up."

Ace closed his eyes. His forehead contorted somewhat and he placed his head into his palm. A groan came from him and he struggled to understand what he was just told. "You mean… that he… Luffy?!" He sighed again. Trying to change the subject, he looked to his mother. "Forget about that right now. I want to know something."

"Yes, Ace?" She asked, curiously happy.

"Tell me…" he paused to look deeply into her eyes, "… did he love you? Tell me the truth."

Rouge didn't skip a beat. A smile lit upon her face and she glowed, "He did. He loved me with all his being. And I loved him just as much."

Ace stood quiet, staring into her eyes to make sure she was being truthful. Finding no lies, he sighed ('I'm sighing a lot lately, aren't I?') and gave a reigniting grin. Ace looked up at the sky and then back to his mother.

"Well then, if he loved you that much I guess I can't really hate him. But don't think I'm starting to like him or anything," He quickly added when he started to see Rouge's smile brighten. "It's just down to mild disliking. I still don't like the guy."

Ace was about to say something more, but an arm pulled him. Caught off guard and off balance, Ace fell to the cloudy ground with surprise. Once he regained his equilibrium he nursed a newly formed bump on his head and shouted angrily, "WHO THE HELL DID THAT?!"

"Yo, Ace! Haven't seen you for a while." A blond man with his hair styled up in yankee fashion and a rounded scar next to his left eye grinned down at Ace. He waved his arm and laughed, "How've you been?"

Shocked again for the umpteenth time since dying, Ace only managed a small mutter of, "Thatch?!"

"This is a friend of yours Ace?" Rouge called down to him, giggling all the while. "Why don't you go spend some time with him? I'm sure you two have a lot of catching up to do."

"Bu... but..."

"It's fine! Go on, play with your friend. I'll be right here after you're done. I Promise."

Thatch took this as his cue and grabbed Ace and dragged him off, saying something about meeting some quack doc, a bell, some swords girl, a yellow fish, a musical pirate crew, a gal with no land, and a strange giant. Ace struggled and somehow pulled himself out of Thatch's hold; he ginned brightly, now out of shock, and decided to have a race with his old friend. Together, hey ran themselves silly off to wherever, their laughter fading from Rouge's ears.

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Please read and review this! And I hope everyone enjoyed reading it!


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